When I was growing up our costumes were always homemade. Sometimes it was annoying when friends had cool store bought Evil Knievel masks/costumes, but at least we never ran into another kid with the same exact costume.
1973 - a good year for pirates. Check out the wide lapels, the patches on my jeans, and the six gun tucked into my waistband.
1974 - my mom made these costumes for my brother and I. I'm sure you can tell who he is, but do you know who I am? I'm Captain Marvel Jr, god damn it!! In case you're not familiar with the Shazam comics, here is the Marvel family.
I think my mom did a great job on the costume. Where the hell else would I ever get a Captain Marvel Jr outfit? They certainly aren't going to sell them in stores. I am often asked why I, a young girl, would choose to dress up as a boy rather than go as Mary Marvel. The answer should be clear - only a wimp would dress up as Mary Marvel. Look at her. Granted I didn't have manly muscles, a package, or short hair, but Captain Marvel Jr was so much cooler. He was a crippled newspaper boy, who idolized the Big Red Cheese aka Captain Marvel, and wasn't even related to the rest of them. Yet he still managed to transform into a superhero.
1975 - my brother recycles my pirate scarf and shirt, yet adds a manly wooden sword. His friend Colin dresses as the standard hobo, and my friend Jennifer dresses as a hunchback, although I never did understand the bandage on her head or the blue eyeshadow. I couldn't decide whether to go as a sailor or a ghost. So I went as the ghost of a sailor. That is supposed to be a bullet hole on my bandage and blood running down my cheek. Looks like the ghostly white makeup has rubbed off, which begs the question what the hell was I rubbing my face on?
1976- I was too old to dress up, but my brother and his friend Mike were happy to go trick or treating. I don't think Mike's prison costume was homemade, but it's still cool. My brother's vampire costume is nice too. But those store bought teeth were impossible to speak with making shouts of trick or treat sound more like "rick or reat."
1973 - a good year for pirates. Check out the wide lapels, the patches on my jeans, and the six gun tucked into my waistband.
1974 - my mom made these costumes for my brother and I. I'm sure you can tell who he is, but do you know who I am? I'm Captain Marvel Jr, god damn it!! In case you're not familiar with the Shazam comics, here is the Marvel family.
I think my mom did a great job on the costume. Where the hell else would I ever get a Captain Marvel Jr outfit? They certainly aren't going to sell them in stores. I am often asked why I, a young girl, would choose to dress up as a boy rather than go as Mary Marvel. The answer should be clear - only a wimp would dress up as Mary Marvel. Look at her. Granted I didn't have manly muscles, a package, or short hair, but Captain Marvel Jr was so much cooler. He was a crippled newspaper boy, who idolized the Big Red Cheese aka Captain Marvel, and wasn't even related to the rest of them. Yet he still managed to transform into a superhero.
1975 - my brother recycles my pirate scarf and shirt, yet adds a manly wooden sword. His friend Colin dresses as the standard hobo, and my friend Jennifer dresses as a hunchback, although I never did understand the bandage on her head or the blue eyeshadow. I couldn't decide whether to go as a sailor or a ghost. So I went as the ghost of a sailor. That is supposed to be a bullet hole on my bandage and blood running down my cheek. Looks like the ghostly white makeup has rubbed off, which begs the question what the hell was I rubbing my face on?
1976- I was too old to dress up, but my brother and his friend Mike were happy to go trick or treating. I don't think Mike's prison costume was homemade, but it's still cool. My brother's vampire costume is nice too. But those store bought teeth were impossible to speak with making shouts of trick or treat sound more like "rick or reat."
13 comments:
Gimme Capt. Marvel Jr. over Superdrab anyday.
That's right! When you dress as Captain Marvel Jr., you can guarantee you won't meet another kid dressed the same way. The bad thing about it is that no one knew who Captain Marvel Jr was.
"Too old to dress up"?! You FREAK!!!
I feel so disillusioned...
Is that a bucket with some yarn on it in the last picture?
My mom always used the gallon milk jug for Frankenstein's head.
Yeah, I always had the homemade costumes and felt like the poor kid on Halloween. Now I think they're much cooler than the store-bought kind!
Your mom rocked, Chris! Capt. Marvel Jr. was a great idea. I also went as a hunchback in '75, like Jennifer, and even wore the same type plaid shirt (!). Did she use a pillow or a football for the hump? Mine was a Spalding.
Jennifer used a pillow for her hump. I'm amazed that plaid shirts were the uniform of choice for hunchbacks!
Michelle, don't know if it was like this in your neighborhood, but once you hit junior high, your peers frowned upon you doing something so babyish as trick or treating.
Also the people handing out candy started saying, "aren't you a bit too old for this?" It was too uncomfortable and I folded to societys pressure.
Ubermilf, the last picture is a milk jug, not a bucket. I guess familys everywhere found the gallon milk jug to be an essential prop for Halloween.
Hi Chris!
Just thought I'd share some of my own homemade costumes from my youth. Check em out at:
Pastor McPurvis' Costumes
Love your blog by the way!
Pastor McPurvis
Pastor McPurvis, your costumes rule!
I totally missed this post! I love the costumes and Brian looks so adorable, I'm dying.
We always had homemade costumes. One year my brother went as a present. He was too young to overrule my mom and the humiliation was scarring I'm sure. (Imagine a boy in a box and tights.)
I missed this post too. Those costumes rocked... We so took our mom for granted. Sniff..I have to call her
Those curtains might have made a great gypsy costume, ha.
My mom made a few original costumes out of having to find a pic in a comic book or so.
Angelina Alaskan Malador was made on January 5, 2015. I was born on January 24, 1987 in Atlanta, Georgia. Alex Clark was a girl in my church. Angelina Alaskan Malador is going to dress up as a 1970's girl for Halloween. Lorelei Richardson was a girl in my gymnastics class. I remember "Animaniacs:Ragamuffins" when I was a girl. Kids' Club was on TBN when I was a girl. Alex Clark has blonde hair. Thomas Bae was a boy in Miss Holt's class. Miss Holt was my second grade teacher. "Garfield and Friends" was on CBS when I was a little girl. "Readalong" was on PBS when I was a little girl. I remember "Readalong:episode 2" when I was a girl. Angelina Alaskan Malador has brown eyes. Cassie Toe was a girl in my church. I went to Sarasota when I was a nineteen-year-old woman in 2006. Daria and Damocles Dog were made on January 16, 2018. Cadfan Cog was made on January 17, 2017. He has green eyes. Miss Holt was a deceptive teacher. Damocles Dog has brown eyes. Daria Dog has blue eyes. "The Jetsons" was on Cartoon Network when I was a fourteen-year-old girl.
Post a Comment